Delhi - Chandigarh - Manali - Leh - Pangong Tso - Khardung La - Kargil - Srinagar - Jammu - Chandigarh - Delhi
Unpacking the bikes at Delhi.
Imran's house; some chit chat on the trip ahead.
Map sketched out for the Leh area with information on stay and food.
Heading out of Delhi after a sleepless night.
'Jhil Mil' dhabha behind which we shared some space with truck drivers, to get some sleep.
Pankaj, (blue jacket) who joined us on the way. He was heading to Leh as well.
Chandigarh; speed limits of 50-60 km/hr. High level of surveilance with cameras and spot fines.
Lunch at a dhabha near Ropar.
A sexy bullet maintained by the owner of the dhabha.
Thats the ride for my next trip!
Kiran's bike being stripped to fix an issue with the engine level indicator.
First sight of beautiful (blue) waters.
The town of Mandi.
'Power Nap', (on the road) as Allen calls it.
The river just before Manali.
Resting outside a dhabha since ATMs were not working. Manali, the last place to get some cash until Leh.
The sight from a spot near the dhabha.
System of a down for Allen. Result of inhaling petrol fumes.
The only company for Kiran when the rest of us dozed off.
Rohtang Pass; the beginning.
Rohtang Pass
Ascending the Rohtang Pass.
First sight of ice; it was damn slippery.
Apar posing with a 'Buddha Man', as we called them.
A small hill at Rohtang Pass.
Breakfast at Rohtang Pass. Met up with Ashish and Komal, who joined us.
Small stream down the Rohtang Pass.
Some broken sturctures down the Rohtang Pass.
Crossing the first stream.
A scenic place at Rohtang Pass.
The road run by the river in most places.
BRO; the guys who lay roads in the Himalayas.
A scenic place near Keylong.
Tandi; the last fuel station before Leh. 365 kms (best case) to go.
A scenic place near Keylong; picture taken from over a bridge.
Thukpa; a tibetian dish with soft noodles and meat.
A scenic place after Keylong.
A sample of the roads.
Running short of time. Clocked a 5 minute break for some tea.
A scenic place near Baralachala.
Some serious waters. Lost my bose earphones' silicone tips with the water.
Apar crossing the stream.
Zing Zing Bar, a location on the way to Baralachala.
Some hard waters. Had to remove shoes to cross. Complete numbness after legs were in freezing water for around 30-40 seconds.
A scenic place at Baralachala.
Baralachala
Bharathpur; highest camping location in Ladakh. 16,500 ft. above sea level. Minus degrees at night.
Some French company in the tent.
Bidding farewell to the French duo.
A scenic place at Bharathpur.
A scenic place after Baralachala.
Some natually formed structures on the river banks.
Objects in the mirror aren't certainly anywhere close.
A scenic place after Sarchu.
Gata loops; these are hair pin bends that fall on the same side of a hill. Most of them can viewed together from the top.
A victim of the Gata loops.
The Gata loops.
BREAKDOWN; In the middle of nowhere. 8 hours to any next mechanic, spare parts or a cell phone signal.
Some riders passing by offering some help.
Our saviors, but for whom we may have still be stuck at some unknown location.
A scenic place at Nakeela Pass.
A scenic place after Nakeela Pass.
A stream after Nakeela Pass.
Some natural structures after Nakeela Pass.
The Medical Officer at the Pang Army camp who helped us with some medicines.
Some cool food!
Starting off from Pang.
A scenic place near Moore Plains.
Moore Plains; a cold desert at 16,000 ft. above sea level. Straight, open road for miles together.
Want some coke? You must be tired.
Exiting the Moore Plains.
Ascending the Taglang La. Snow fall followed shortly.
Land slide during the Taglang La ascent.
A view from the top of Taglang La.
Reached the top of Taglang La.
Taglang La; World's second highest motorable road. 17,852 ft. above sea level.
Snow and ice.
Descending the Taglang La.
Rumtse; the first sight of greenery after 3 days.
Lunch at Rumtse.
Red mountains from Rumtse to Leh.
Cultivation and vegetation.
Finally!
Indus River and Nuba Valley.
A big canal near an Army Camp close to Karu.
A monastery near Leh.
A scenic place before Leh.
Allen's bike being taken care of Juma's shop.
Juma Bhai and his (strategical) mechanic store.
The roads of Leh.
Leh Palace; Opening hours: Sunrise to Sunset
A view from atop the Leh Palace.
One half of Leh is dry, the other green. Notice the transition.
The Leh Palace
Allen and Leh
The greener part of Leh.
Shanthi Stupa
The Leh Palace.
The fort above the Leh Palace.
The guys who made some custom tees for us.
Breakfast at Karu; 2 bananas and some water.
Ascending the Chang La.
Atop Chang La.
Some masala tea and snacks provided by the Army.
Chang La; World's third highest motorable road.
Starting the Chang La descent through ice and mud.
A scenic place at Chang La.
Allen's bike down; spare spark plug left at hotel.
I wonder Allen's bike breaks down only at scenic places.
An ice lake.
Yaks; supposed to be wild animals, but run away when you get near them.
A scenic place en-route Pangong Tso Lake.
Pagal Nala; a river full of surprises. You never know when there will be a sudden flow of water.
The first sight of the Pangong Tso Lake.
Pangong Tso Lake
At the Pangong Tso Lake.
Allen's bike blown away by the wind.
Playing in the snow atop the Chang La.
Allen's bike pushed from Chang La to Leh; 60 kms.
A view of Leh en-route the Khardung La.
People cycling down the Khardung La.
Army convoy with 30 odd trucks passing by.
A scenic place en-route the Khardung La.
Khardung La
Khardung La; World highest motorable road; 18,380 ft. on board. 17,700 ft. shown by GPS.
A scenic place on the other side of Khardung La.
Starting return leg from Leh to Kargil. Starting the day with rain.
A scenic place near Leh.
Highway from Leh towards Kargil. Vehicles do maximum of 50 km/hr due to lack of oxygen.
Magnetic Hill; supposedly pulls vehicles uphill. Wasn't lucky enough to witness the phenomenon.
Indus River
A scenic place on the way to Kargil from Leh.
Breakfast at a dhabha.
Fresh silver snow due to the rains previous night.
The Indus River running by the road.
A beautiful Valley on the way to Kargil from Leh.
The 220, awarded the best performer during the trip.
Fotula Top; highest point on the road from Leh to Srinagar.
Running water vs Still water
Magical vegetation in the middle of dry land.
The town of Kargil.
Some points in Indian land, which are visible from Pakistan.
A beautiful Valley on the way to Srinagar from Kargil.
Roads amidst the valleys of Kashmir.
Parking lot at the Drass War Memorial.
Drass War Memorial
Operation Vijay; during the war way back.
In rememberance of the brave souls who died in the Kargil war.
Some children at Kashmir.
Drass; second coldest inhabited place (-60 deg.) in the world on 9 Jan, 1995.
Mr. Ali and his awesome dhabha that served excellent mutton.
Drass
Some Army Officers, who interacted well with us, and explained a little about their tough life style.
A beautiful Kashmir valley.
An army camp on the banks of a river.
Zozilla Pass
Rescue team monitoring the valleys.
Apar watching the Amarnath yatra camps.
Border Roads Organization; Impossible takes time. Difficult will be done immediately.
Sonamarg
The Sind River at Sonamarg.
Some signs that were way beyond understanding.
Srinagar; unpacking at the hotel.
Dal Lake, Srinagar.
A Chikkara ride on the Dal Lake.
Dal Lake; The boy selling some corn from the boat nearby.
Our Chikkara boatman.
A house boar on the Dal Lake. Wi-fi enabled!
A market in the water.
A house on the Dal Lake.
Starting off from Srinagar towards Jammu.
Early morning fog near Srinagar.
A scenic place on the way to Jammu from Srinagar.
A 50 kms detour to this place, where Allen and Kiran realized they were on the wrong track.
Jawahal tunel; 2.83 kms long.
A tamil army officer sharing a lighter moment with us.
Kiran ready to face anything. Front brake level being replaced after he dropped the bike due to excess weight.
10 kms before Jammu; deciding where to halt for the day.
Starting off from Jammu towards Delhi.
Tea break.
Resting in an A/C hall to beat the heat.
Sync up break en-route the 600 km single ride from Jammu to Delhi.
Just before entering Delhi; Kiran fixing the fuse.
Lal Singh, our hero. Led us all the way from Delhi outskirts to Karol Bagh and helped us find a cheap room in a good place.
Sightseeing at Delhi; India Gate.
Flying back to base!
4 guys, 15 days, 2900 kms, 18380 ft. above sea level. BEEN THERE DONE THAT!
